- From the start, you just knew that China would win it. They had solid performances in every apparatus. Well done.

- Japan coming into the Olympics as the former gold medalists had to settle for silver.

- Without Paul and Morgan Hamm, the US team seemed doomed. And then they gave amazing performances on the high bar that kept the crowd roaring. Maybe if they didn't finish with the pommel horse (where they were weakest), they could've even sneaked in 2nd place.

- What happened to the former powerhouses Russia and Romania? Heck, Germany was better.

- Going into the finals, USA was expected to win. Afterall, they had Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin who are both exceptionally good, all-around gymnasts. But I was rooting for China all the way. They are kind of the underdog in this case. As for Romania and Russia, well, their teams aren't as packed as before.

- It's interesting how they kept USA and China (also Russia and Romania) together during rotations. It's like the other teams didn't even matter. Because it was all about those 4 teams.

- First Rotation: Russia had the highest score. Surely they would. They started on the uneven bars. Like the commentator was saying, it is best to rack up points on the bars and on the beam. But what was surprising was that USA was 2nd and China was 3rd after the first rotation. Interesting.

- Second Rotation: USA and China are off to the uneven bars. Damn, Nastia Liukin gets the highest score (yet) during the whole competition: a 16.900. That routine had a starting score of 17.700. So that was very impressive. And it's good that she didn't land on her butt during the preliminary rounds. So the Chinese are feeling the heat! Well, what do you know, their last two gymnasts get a 16.800 and a 16.8500. Ha! To think He Kexin (the last to perform) also fell during the prelminary rounds. There's the uneven bars final for you: Nastia Liukin versus He Kexin. After this round, China leads the pack.

- Third Rotation: Holy hell! Cheng Fei (the oldest and team captain of their team) fell off the beam! That is going to be a huge deduction. So that should've given the US team the opportunity to grab the gold, right? Well, the broadcast cut this part and went straight to the final rotation. But apparently, the first US gymnast, Alicia Sacramone (also the team captain) on the beam also fell. And she fell on her first skill! Ouch! Also, the Russians fumble on their apparatus so the Romanians creep into third place.

- Fourth Rotation: I read somewhere that this was the strongest appartus (together with the beam) for the US. But going into the finals, China had the highest score on floor. Sacramone fell again. Liukin and Johnson went out of bounds. Buh-bye gold! The Chinese girls just had to keep it together. And they did, while having fun! Jiang Yuyuan had the most enjoyable routine while Cheng Fei had the most impressive routine. Also, they got a Romanian choreographer for their routines. You can't beat that!

- It's still going to be between Johnson and Liukin for the all-around title. These two are really exceptional. Poor Sacramone. She just couldn't help bundling up and crying.

- I'm happy for the Chinese girls. It is their first gold in this category. And they really performed under pressure. But you wouldn't see it in their smiling faces. Like the commentator said, they went for youth and innocence. And they won. Awesome!

My personal favourite is relatively unknown--not like Kerri Strug or Dominique Moceanu (another personal favourite of mine) at least in terms of popularity--but she's very good in her own right: Jamie Dantszcher.

Bela Karolyi, who coached Retton of the United States and Nadia Comaneci of Romania to their Olympic gold-medal triumphs, said the problem of under-age gymnasts had been around for years. Age is an easy thing to alter in an authoritarian country, he said, because the government has such strict control of official paperwork.

He should know--he pioneered sending kids at gymnastics meets. Why is he complaining now for what he started?